The police watchdog has concluded their investigation into Staffordshire Police's response to incidents before a teenage girl was stabbed by her ex-boyfriend in a Staffordshire churchyard.

The girl was stabbed outside All Saints Church in Burton on January 23 last year after being reported missing the evening before.

In June 20-year-old man was jailed for three years and two months for wounding and possession of a knife after being convicted at Stafford Crown Court.

An investigation by the Independent Office of Police Complaints (IOPC) led to four officers from Staffordshire Police receiving management action after an assessment of whether their actions had followed the force's policy on domestic abuse, stalking and harrassment.

IOPC Regional Director Derrick Campbell said: “Although opportunities were missed that could have led to improved welfare and safeguarding of the girl, the escalation in seriousness of the incidents in January 2018 could not reasonably have been foreseen.

Read More

"Thankfully the outcome of the attack was not even more serious. Staffordshire Police has recognised that more could and should have been done, and a positive from our investigation is that the force is incorporating learning from it in officer training.

Evidence gathered as part of the IOPC investigation showed complaints had been made to the police about the ex-boyfriend pestering the girl in December 2017, with an incident logged as 'stalking and harrassment'.

An IOPC spokesman added: "After interviewing the girl, a police constable left a voice message telling the man not to contact her. It was not established that the message was ever received and our view was that it should have been delivered in person.

Read More

"We found that another constable’s decision not to investigate a further incident in January 2018 as harassment, despite knowing ‘words of advice’ had already been given to the man, was inadequate. We considered that a sergeant should have recognised this when reviewing the decision.

"During our nine-month investigation, we obtained accounts from officers and a witness, and reviewed relevant force policy and procedure."